Applicant Info and Eligibility

Applicant Information

With the enactment of the Every Student Succeeds Act (ESSA) in December 2015, the Elementary and Secondary Education of 1965 (ESEA) was reauthorized and amended. These amendments included significant changes affecting the CSP, including the CSP Grants to Charter School Developers for the Opening of New Charter Schools and for the Replication and Expansion of High-Quality Charter Schools (Developer Grants) competition. You can find out more information on ESSA by here.

Previous Competitions

To learn more about the previous competitions under CFDA 84.282B, please visit the links below.

Eligibility

Applied to an authorized public chartering authority to operate a charter school; and

Provided adequate and timely notice to that authority. (Section 4310(6) of the ESEA).

Additionally, the charter school must be located in a State with a State statute Start Printed Page 8979 specifically authorizing the establishment of charter schools (section 4310(2) of the ESEA) and in which a State entity currently does not have a CSP State Entity grant (CFDA number 84.282A) under section 4303 of the ESEA.[6] (Section 4305(a)(2) of the ESEA). In accordance with section 437(d)(1) of GEPA, 20 U.S.C. 1232(d)(1), we further establish that eligibility in a State with a CSP SEA grant (CFDA 84.282A) under the ESEA, as amended by NCLB, is limited to grants for replication and expansion [1] (CFDA 84.282E) and only if the Department has not approved an amendment to the SEA’s approved grant application authorizing the SEA to make subgrants for replication and expansion[2].

States in which a State entity currently has an approved CSP State Entity grant application under section 4303 of the ESEA are Indiana, Maryland, Minnesota, Mississippi, New Mexico, Oklahoma, Rhode Island, Texas, and Wisconsin. We will not consider applications from applicants in these States under either CFDA 84.282B or 84.282E.

States in which the State Educational Agency (SEA) currently has an approved CSP SEA grant application under the ESEA, as amended by NCLB (i.e., a grant award made in fiscal year 2016 or earlier), include Arizona, California, Colorado, District of Columbia, Florida, Georgia, Illinois, Louisiana, Massachusetts, Nevada, New York, Ohio, Oregon, South Carolina, Tennessee, and Washington. We will not consider applications from applicants in these States for grants for the opening of new charter schools submitted under CFDA number 84.282B.

The Department is currently reviewing amendment requests from SEAs with grants under the ESEA, as amended by NCLB that would authorize the SEA to make subgrants for replication and expansion. The Department will post the names of SEAs receiving approval for this flexibility here. Please return to this page for updates. For more information on the ESSA amendment requests mentioned above, please click here.

As a general matter, the Secretary considers charter schools that have been in operation for more than five years to be past the initial implementation phase and, therefore, ineligible to receive CSP funds under CFDA number 84.282B to support the opening of a new charter school or under CFDA number 84.282E for the replication of a high-quality charter school; however, such schools may receive CSP funds under CFDA number 84.282E for the expansion of a high-quality charter school.

Note: Developer means an individual or group of individuals (including a public or private nonprofit organization), which may include teachers, administrators and other school staff, parents, or other members of the local community in which a charter school project will be carried out. (Section 4310(5) of the ESEA).

Note: If an applicant has applied to an authorized public chartering agency to operate a new school and has not yet been approved, it should include information in its application addressing the plan and timeline to receive notification from the authorizer on the final decision. Additionally, an applicant should delineate any costs in its proposed budget that are projected to be incurred prior to the date the applicant’s charter school application is approved by the authorized public chartering agency.

Funding Restrictions

Use of Funds for Post-Award Grants to Developers for the Opening of New Charter Schools and for the Replication and Expansion of High-Quality Charter Schools. An eligible applicant receiving a grant under CFDA number 84.282B or 84.282E may use the grant funds only for–the purpose of carrying out the activities described in section 4303(h) of the ESEA in a State that does not currently have a CSP State Entity or State Educational Agency grant approved for the activities under this competition. Please see the NIA and the eligibility section above for complete eligibility information.

Note: As a general matter, the Secretary considers charter schools that have been in operation for more than five years to be past the initial implementation phase and, therefore, ineligible to receive CSP funds under CFDA number 84.282B to support the opening of a charter school.

Grantees must use the grant funds to open and prepare for the operation of a new charter school; to open and prepare for the operation of a replicated high-quality charter school; or to expand a high-quality charter school, as applicable. Grant funds must be used to carry out allowable activities, described in section 4303(h) of the ESEA, which include the following:

Preparing teachers, school leaders, and specialized instructional support personnel, including through paying costs associated with—

Providing professional development; and

Hiring and compensating, during the applicant’s planning period specified in the application for funds, one or more of the following:

Carrying out necessary renovations to ensure that a new school building complies with applicable statutes and regulations, and minor facilities repairs (excluding construction).

Providing one-time, startup costs associated with providing transportation to students to and from the charter school.

Carrying out community engagement activities, which may include paying the cost of student and staff recruitment.

Providing for other appropriate, non-sustained costs related to the opening of new charter schools, or the replication or expansion of high-quality charter schools, as applicable, when such costs cannot be met from other sources.

A grant awarded by the Secretary under this competition may be for a period of not more than five years, of which the grantee may use not more than 18 months for planning and program design. (Section 4303(d)(1)(B) of the ESEA). We establish that applicants may only propose to support one charter school per grant application, in accordance with section 437(d)(1) of GEPA, 20 U.S.C. 1232(d)(1).